When I was little, I discovered crystallized ginger in the spice rack. Crunchy, spicy, hot, and sweet, crystallized ginger became my favorite candy. My mother didn’t seem to mind; I’m not sure she’d ever found a better use for it.
Traveling to Alaska, a few years ago, with my husband, son, and daughter, I indulged in ginger candy from Asia. It’s supposed to help alleviate nausea on the whale-watching cruise, but that’s not a given; it only served to turn my daughter off all things ginger for the next two years.
It may not alleviate nausea, but it’s tasty in with a little vodka and ginger beer.
A couple of weeks ago, in a moment of nostalgia, I bought a little box of crystallized ginger from the grocery store. Mmmm. It’s a bit pricey, for such a small quantity, but worth it!
Next time, I thought, I’ll try making it myself. If I’d known, then, how easy it would be – and how much tastier it would be, how much more of a spicy bite it would have – I’d have made it from scratch the first time. I followed this simple recipe for candied ginger from Alton Brown.
Peel and chop about a pound of ginger. Simmer in 5 cups of water, until the ginger is softened – about 30 minutes. Drain, but reserve the liquid. Put the ginger back into the pot and stir in an equal amount of sugar, by weight. Add 1/4 cup of the ginger water, bring to a boil, and simmer for about 20-30 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the syrup thickens and the sugar starts to recrystallize.
This is what it should look like:
Toss it out onto a cooling rack (have parchment or foil underneath to catch all that lovely, gingered sugar). Let it cool, then seal it up in an airtight container. The recipe says it will keep for about two weeks.
It goes extraordinarily well with dark chocolate and a classic book.
I’m thinking of adding a little saffron or hot pepper, next time. Have you ever made crystallized ginger? Would you, now that you know how easy it is?
I would love to make this some day, maybe after I am finished with the A to Z Challenge! 😛
Saving this recipe, Holly, Thanks!
It is SO easy! Make it now, and indulge yourself DURING the challenge!
I love the crunch and flavor of candied ginger! Making it from scratch, however, is not something I’d do anymore. Having developed an aversion to cooking and baking over the years, I’ll pick up my yummy ginger at the store.
So, it’s sugared ginger! I’ll stick with plain ginger.
You don’t know what you’re missing! 🙂 But that’s fine. Plain ginger’s good, too.
As a child I never ate crystallized ginger but I loved ginger ale made with real ginger. I don’t like the bite of ginger that much, not enough to make this, but my husband grew ginger for several years. In your climate that would be easy for you, I think.
Hmm. I might have to try that! The sugar takes much of the bite out of this. It’s like a spicier ginger ale in candy form. I don’t just munch on raw ginger, either.
Hmmm, I will have to try that, especially if the sugar takes much of the bite out of it. But, after Easter because I… um… gave up sweet treats for Lent and I am stubbornly stucking to it.
There is plenty of time after Lent, Alice! Stick to your resolve; this can certainly wait.
Can you believe I use ginger every day but I have never heard of crystallised ginger or a candy like that. Your recipe is simple.:)
I can believe it! Although I grew up with it (and my dad mentioned he liked it, too), I’m sure many people have either seen it in the spice rack and wondered what it was good for, or never encountered it at all.
I do not remember ever seeing it called a “candy” until we went to Alaska, some years ago, and were given ginger candy – similar, but not QUITE the same as this – from Asia, to settle out stomachs on the whale-watching cruise.
P.S. The main difference between that ginger candy and “crystallized” ginger is that the latter is sweeter and has a bit of a crunch before you get to the tenderized bit of now-sweetened ginger in the center.